Netbook : We are going back to move forward

Sachin Tendulkar is one of my favorite cricketers. I was disappointed when he was not included in the ICC all time great’s list. The only thing I hate about Tendulkar is his hunger for centuries. Not sure why but I just hate it. How does a century make a batsmen feel so good? I did not know why all the while until I found that this is my 100th post at trak.in. Now, I understand why centuries for batsmen and milestones in general are important. It feels good to reach a milestone.

When I bought myÂ first computer back in 2000, it was Pentium 2 processor with 128 MB RAM and 3GB hard drive. That costed my dad 25000 rupees. Since then I bought 2 laptop computers on my ownÂ at much lower price with features putting my first computer to shame. That is only expected in this industry of ours. Now the two laptops I have are defunct. One has a failed mother board and the other has a failed hard drive.

I swapped the hard drives and had one working computer. All seemed happy until yesterday when the hard drive on my new hybrid laptop failed yet again. Now I am almost computer less. I am actively looking for a new computer. I haven’t decided whether it is going to be a desktop or laptop or a netbook.

I have been hearing a lot about the netbook’s off late. They are making huge sales and eating into the market share of desktops and laptops alike. If fact, notebooks or laptops have outnumbered desktop sales for the first time last year. Netbooks which are considered as notebooks have contributed to this transformation.

What exactly is this netbook?

Netbooks has its roots in a research project of One laptop per child. It led the way for low-cost laptops and later to netbooks. The market is still divided on what a netbook is or isn’t. But, Netbook as I understand is a low-cost computer which gives me essential features of browsing the net, sending email and watching a video. Some say it is a cross between a low-cost laptop and a high-end mobile.

Netbook isn’t for gaming or hard core video editing. It also removes the things which might be redundant. Most netbooks come without a CD/DVD drive. Flash drives are so cheap and convenient these days that CD’s and DVD’s are almost redundant. And, most computers allow booting from flash drives.To put in a bit of cricket analogy, If desktops are test matches and Laptops are one-day international then netbooks are 20-20.

Asus has started the revolution with EeePC. Other manufacturers like Acer, Dell and HP are following it. Some manufacturers like Toshiba are not embracing it as yet. But, industry as a whole see a huge potential for netbooks.

How can a computer designed for the third-world find such a huge acceptance? The computer market is still young in the 3rd world and no body really explored the market at the bottom. No one thought that a lot-cost computer would be a hit. No one really felt that computer has a market at the low-end. More than the 3rd world its acceptance is huge in the developed world. People are buying it as a second computer to aid them in their travel. Which is an indication the computer market in the developed world isn’t fully explored.

Acer has launched a netbook for 15000 rupees in India. This follows the Asus Eee Book launch and a bunch of other low cost PC’s. I have seen a Acer netbook which has a tiny little screen and keyboard. I found yping on that keyboard for a period difficult. I would go again and re-look those netbooks and make a decision. I am not willing to spend anything more than 15000 rupees (inclusive of all taxes).

With its lower battery weight and longer battery life, Netbook is more eco-friendly than a desktop or a laptop. It requires less energy for shipping. Running it would also me easy on the wallet. Windows 7, Microsoft’s new operating system can run on a Netbooks. This is just another example that netbooks are set to rise in 2009.

What do you think of netbooks in general and how do you think they will perform in India? If you already have a netbook please share your experience.

Netbooks sure are handy when it comes to the ease of carrying and how light they are on the pocket.But at some point of time,they always let us asking for “more”.What if i had a faster processor,what if the harddisk had more space etc.

As @Arun mentions, power also can be a factor thwoing up odds against netbooks.For someone buyin a netbook for the portability,a sub standard power capacity leads to “chicken and egg” problem.
Moreover, I dont know but i always go by the funda “mehengi roye ek bar,sasti roye bar-bar”, so netbooks are a no-no for me

Hey Sriram…Hearty congratulations on getting to the 100th post on trak.in . I sure did not realize it. Looking forward for many hundreds more like these :)
You know, I have been thinking about buying a netbook for last 1 year, and yet I have not been able to make a decision…honestly the portability factor of a netbook is unmatched…especially the Aspire One / Asus EEPC and the likes. Its a pain to carry these Dells and HPs especially the ones like 15.4′ screens like the one I have :(

What also makes it attractive for users like me is that 90% of the work we do is on the internet and documents / presentations etc…for which these netbooks work perfectly.
However, the doubts come to my mind…about their power when needed for my 10% of work.
And not only that, if you are used to better config laptops – going below just does not cut the chord !